Adapter for explosive fluid tanks



F. c. OVERBURY ADAPTER FOREXPLOSIVE FLUID TANKS Filed Oct. 27, 1951 Dec.4, 1934.

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Patented Dec. 4, 1934 -U N TE-D A T;E OFFI E Application October 27,1931, Serial No.571,4 7 3 i 1 Claims. (01. 22o-s6 It is known thatserious danger attends the filling of tanks with volatile inflammableliquids, such as gasoline, due either-to presence of a flame in thevicinity of the. tank, as on striking a 5 match, or to a spark'caused bystatic'electricity and which jumps thespace between the tank and fillingnozzle when the latter is applied to the fillingfinlet of'the'tank. Ofcourse, this danger has been manifested usually in connection with thefilling of the gasoline tanks ofautomobiles where carelessness anddisregard of the high inflammability of this fuel'frequently, attend afilling operation and'where also static electricity generatedby thevautomobile asan incident of '15 its operation has to be takenintoaccount.

One object of this invention is to provide an inflammable-fluidtank orother receiver with means atan opening therein, asits filling inlet, forsealing the contents. of the tank'from the atmosphere at least whileactual passage of the fluid is going on, whereby any vapor arising willbe confined in the receiver and sparks or other igniting sourcesexcluded therefrom and an explosion or conflagration will be prevented.In

the best form, as will hereinafter appear, the construction of saidmeans is such that it normally acts to seal not only during actualpassage of the fluid but between such periods. Further, in order thatthe operation may not be checked by change 311 of atmospheric pressurein the receiver during fluid transfer I provide a conductor for airconnecting the receiver and reservoir with which it is connected by theconductor for the fluid being transferred.

Another object is to provide such a receiver with means at its saidopening for electrically insulating the portion of the receiverhaving'the opening from the fluid conductor when the latter is appliedto the receiver. A still further object is to construct said means sothat it may. form an adapter for attachment to existing receivers.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of the inlet portion of anautomobile fuel tank equipped with venting the air from the tank to befilled back to the reservoir of such apparatus. i

The receiver or tank 1 to be filled has the usual upstandingginlet ormouth 2 afiording the opening, here a passage 20:, of the receiver; In'place so of the cap usually screwed thereon at '3' my inventioncontemplates the following:

4 is an annular gasket which may besecure upon the inlet in any way, butsince it should be attached thereto in some-way so that the jointbetween them shall be sealed I prefer to form it from some elasticyielding material,- as rubber, which will form a good sealingcontactwith-the inlet continuously thereof, as by forminga concentricgroove5in the under side of said member 7 adapted to,receive the-rim ofthe inlet with a snug-fia-as. shown. l

This member has a flangeor lip 6-which projects inwardly: fromandextends continuously of its inner surface,;the opening-or passagethrough which should be of somewhat less diameter than that of. thenozzle -7 of the fuel; conductor iiyleading from a filling apparatus 9(Fig. 5). As so far described, when the nozzle is inserted it must firstexpand this flange or lip, wherefore thereupon 89 the contents of thetank (even the vapor of the fuel) are confined therein and admission ofany igniting influence is prevented.

For preventing escape of the contents of the tank or admission theretoof. igniting influences 'in' the intervals between fillings the member 4has an inside valve-seat 10, preferably upwardly conical, and with thiscoacts a valve 11, also preferably upwardly conical, which isdepressible but is normally held against its seat, or closed. This 9,0.valve in the present example is pivotally supported and held normallyclosed by a strip of spring metal 12 which is bent to the proper angleand is secured to the valve and the inner surface of member 4 by rivets13.

In reference to the illustrated combination of the lip. 6 and valve 11,it is noted that before the valve is opened by the act of entering thenozzle a vapor-tight seal is formed aroundthe nozzle by the lip. Inshort, at no time is there access to each other as. between the interiorand exterior of the tank, as there would be between fillings if thevalve. were absent or during filling if the lip were absent.

Of course during filling provision must be made 5 for displacement fromthe tank of the contained air. Wherefore the member 4 may be providedwith an air-escape duct 1a with which an air vent tube 15 connected tothe tank 16 of the filling apparatus 9 and lashed to the conductor orpipe p1 8 by bands 15a may be placed in communication.

Further reference to this will be made hereinafter.

To prevent sparking between the nozzle and some portion of the tankinlet as an incident of static electricity present in either of them themember 4 is formed of insulating material, as rubber already mentioned,and in the best form it has a depending sleeve 4a (of insulatingmaterial)","herejformed integral with it and also yielding; thisis-ofsufiicient depth to reach at least as far down as the bottom of theinlet so as to prevent contact of the inserted nozzle with the inlet atany point. 5

The member 4 may be reinforced by an apertured stiff disk 17superimposed thereon and in any way secured thereto, as by rivets 18.And to exclude water there may be a closure 19 in the form of a diskoverlying disk 17 and pivotedto move in its own plane. How this diskispivoted is not material, but in the present example I utilize asitspivota mouth-piece or socket zc which forms the outlet'end ofthe'air-duct and is adapted'to receive the free end or the air-vent tube andis' sc'rewed into or otherwise projects from the diskfli' Instead ofventing the air from the tank by a duct, as 14, inthe member 4 I mayform an air duct or by-pass 21 in the filling nozzle, as shown in Fig.4, I whereby fuel-admission and air-escape both become effective on thesingle act of entering the nozzle into the member 4'. i

Having thus fully described my invention what Iclaim'isz" i '1. Anadapterto be flttedtc an inflammable fluid receiver, said adapter'havlngan opening'to communicate with a tubular" fluidconductorapplied theretoand consisting of an annular gasket having 'means'to form with thereceiver a seal around said opening an'dan inward elastic lip around theopening more yielding continuously thereof than the remainder fof saidgasket.

" 2. In combination; an inflammable-fluid remeans, acting independentlyof a force extraneous of the adapter, to grip the inlet and therebyforming between said member and inlet a circumferential seal and alsomeans to form with a tubular'c'onductor for supplying fluid to thecontainer a seal around the conductor, and a valve closing the apertureof and movably supported on said 11. In combination, aninflammable-fluid receiver having a tubular filling inlet, and anadapter comprising an-annular=member having means, acting independentlyof a force extraneous of the adapter, to grip the inlet and therebyforming between said member and inlet a circumferential seal'and alsoelectrodnsulative means to term with atubular conductor for supplyingfluid to the container 9, seal-around the conductonand a valve closingthe aperture of and movablysur ported on said. member. i

5. In combination; an ceiverv having a tubular filling: inlet, and anadapter comprisingan annular member having means, acting'independentlyof a force extraneous of the adapter, to 'grip the inlet and therebyforming between saidimemberand inIet'a-circumferential seal and alsomeans to form with-a tubular conductor forsupplyingfluiditoithecontainer a seal aroundthe conductor, and-a valve closin theapertureand arranged to be opened-and held open .bythe -co'nductor onthe forming of the second-namedseal; i

" -FREDERICK C."QVERBURY.

